Love In Writing
by Jade Raven 21
Summary: *Finished* Piccolo saves a woman in the woods. She creates something that leads him to find her again and become friends. They eventually become more.
1. Discovery

**Discovery**

May ran through the forest as fast as she could, her legs weakening from her constant effort. She couldn't keep this up for long but she had to get away from those who wished to harm her. 

"When I find you, you're gonna pay bitch," she heard from somewhere behind her. She didn't even try to look back because she knew that would only slow her down. 

As she dodged the trees and underbrush, the branches catching and tearing her thin garment and her bare feet. She screamed as she was thrown to the ground. May lie on her stomach, a heavy weight pressing down on her back, and attempted to rise. The weight was too much for her. A hot breath on her ear drew her attention as the man whispered, "You're mine now." 

May screamed again before the man twisted her onto her back and slapped her. Her cheek stung and she knew that it would leave a huge bruise, but that was not what worried her at the moment. The man tore the remains of her gown from her body leaving only her underclothing. She screamed again, tears streaming down her cheeks, as the man roughly grabbed her chest and squeezed. 

May bucked her hips, trying to get the man off of her long enough for her to escape, but she wasn't strong enough. He seemed to like her attempted struggles and treated her rougher the more she tried to run. She turned her head to the side and closed her eyes, not wanting to see what was about to happen to her. 

Just as he had torn the right strap of her bra and was trying to get the thing off entirely when she suddenly felt the weight lifted off of her. Afraid that this would be her only chance of escape, May turned over and jumped to her feet, grabbing out for any scrap of clothing she could, and began running once again. 

She soon approached a small lake into which a tall waterfall flowed. Behind the waterfall, she saw that it grew even darker than the already darkening sky. It could be a cave. Being as careful and quick as she could, she used the stones as steps and tried to get to the cave. Climbing up a little, her leg slipped once and she could feel blood running down the side of her leg. She regained her footing and climbed the rest of the way in. 

Once inside, she looked back to see if anyone had followed her. She didn't see anyone and hoped that whoever they were would think that she was still running. The loss of blood and the weariness from running that she felt caused her eyelids to droop and herself to crawl deeper into the cave. 

May felt around on the ground and soon came across something soft. Assuming it was some sort of moss growing in the damp atmosphere, she lay down and soon drifted off to sleep, too weary and hurt to even care if they found her at this point in time. 

Piccolo's concentration wavered, yet again, and he growled in frustration at his lack of control. Deciding that he needed a spar, Piccolo rose from his meditative position and stood in the air. He directed his thoughts looking for a familiar ki, and when he found it, he took off in that direction, knowing he could get a good fight out of Goku. 

As he flew through the air, his sensitive ears were suddenly assaulted by the unmistakable scream of a woman. He came abruptly to a halt midair, his hands remaining by his sides, not wanting anyone to think him weak, as he looked around at the ground beneath his feet. 

At first, all Piccolo could see was the top of the trees, but through the dense foliage, he could barely make out the shape of a human. Looking closer, he noticed that there was actually two human, one on top of the other, and the person on the bottom looked to be struggling fiercely against the other. He guessed that the scream had come from the person on the bottom, and for some reason, he soon found himself flying towards the two humans, and pulling the larger one off of and away from the female. 

Piccolo lifted the man high, considering the Namek's height, and watched as the woman got up and ran away. He waited a few seconds to see if she was really away, and then looked at the man he held in his hand by the scruff of his neck. The man appeared to be scared out of his wits, just the way Piccolo liked them. 

Before he could do anything, another man appeared behind Piccolo and tried to hit him with what looked to be a long piece of wood. Piccolo just side stepped the man and picked him up as well. He was deciding what he should do to them when they began blubbering about not hurting them. 

Disgusted by the two pathetic humans, he just brought his hands together, causing them to hit their heads and go unconscious. He dropped them on the ground and left, flying up above the trees and back to his cave behind the waterfall. 

When Piccolo landed in the mouth of the cave, he could sense that something was different. Using a ki ball, he lit the pile of kindling in the middle of the floor and looked around. He noticed that the woman he had helped earlier was lying on his mat on the ground. 

Piccolo also noticed that she was hurt pretty badly, her leg had a large gash along the side from her ankle to her knee and it was still bleeding. Not wanting to get blood all over his cave, Piccolo decided to use the bandages he kept in the back of the cave for when his sparring sessions became a little too violent. 

He bandaged up her leg and used the fresh water from the waterfall to clean her cuts and bruises. Surprising even himself, he was quite gentle and the woman didn't even stir at his gentle ministrations. 

When he finished dressing her wounds, he pulled his cape over her to keep her warm and went to sit by the fire. All he thought about after that was that Gohan had made him softer than he thought. 

May could hear the rush of water and see the sunlight through her eyelids as she began to stir to wakefulness. Her body felt heavy and sluggish, and as she opened her eyes, she was met with the sight of a grey, stone wall. She closed her eyes again as she attempted to sit up, her body protesting the movement. 

Reopening her eyes, she saw the sunlight glinting through the waterfall. It was quite beautiful and she smiled a little bit. 

"You shouldn't move that much," said a deep voice, startling her out of her revelry. 

May looked over into the shadows when out stepped an extremely tall, green man. She gasped in surprise and clutched the cloth that lay over her, to her chest. It was then that she noticed her leg had been bandaged and that someone had covered her with a large, white cloth that was attached to something heavy at the end. 

"Who are you?" She asked, trying to keep her voice steady, but not succeeding entirely. 

Piccolo stepped forward, into the light, and said, "My name is Piccolo." 

"I'm May. Can you tell me what happened?" 

"I found you in the forest being attacked by some man." 

"You saved my life," May said, "I owe you so much, thank you." 

"It was nothing," Piccolo huffed, not wanting anything from this human. "What were you doing out there anyway?" 

May lowered her head for a moment, just then noticing that she was almost naked. She flushed and asked, "Do you have any clothes that I could borrow?" She looked up and saw that he had a slightly annoyed look on his face, but he leaned over and put his hand on her forehead. 

In a flash of light, she noticed that she wore almost the exact same thing he did. A purple top and pants with a red sash. She was stunned for a moment before asking, "How did you do that? 

"Ki," he said simply, not elaborating. She knew that it was useless to ask him to explain and so began to tell him why she was out here. 

"I live in the woods, far away from the city. I don't like to be around a lot of people. Those two men came out here to hide and they found my home. One of them came in through the window and opened the door for the other one. Before they turned on the light, I hit one of them with a bat. I think he was knocked out, and then the other one came at me. I dodged him and ran outside, through the forest until he caught me. Then, you came and saved me." 

After listening to her story, Piccolo turned and left the cave. He had heard her stomach rumble and didn't want her complaining about hunger in a little bit. 

May watched him leave; secretly hoping she hadn't done anything to upset him. She took the time to look around the cave and noticed that what she thought had been a bed of moss was in fact a mat that looked to serve as a bed of some sort. She attempted to rise, not putting to much weight on her damaged leg. 

She went to the edge of the cave and looked out, noticing how the light seemed so beautiful reflected off of the surface of the lake below. She carefully climbed down from the cave, almost slipping once, and kneeled down on the edge of the lake. 

Running last night and sleeping so long had made her very thirsty. As she sipped from her hand, the cool water running down her throat, she heard a soft thump behind her. Turning around, she saw Piccolo had returned. 

"Here," he said, setting something down beside her. 

She reached out and picked up several apples. "Thank you," she said, biting into the first. Piccolo just stood there, watching her until she finished. 

"Let's go," he said, as she stood back up. 

"Where are we going?" she asked as he picked her up in his arms, causing her to gasp in surprise and cling to his neck. 

"I'm taking you home. I want you out of my cave," he said, and with that, began to lift off of the ground. 

"W-w-we're f-f-flying!" May exclaimed in a shrill, high voice. 

Piccolo winced slightly at the assault on his sensitive ears and said, "yes, it's the fastest way to get you home." 

"I've never flown before without a plane," she said in a shaky voice, "how do you do this?" 

"Ki." 

"What's ki?" She asked, remembering that ki was the same reason he gave for the clothes. 

Piccolo sighed in frustration, but decided that he would be rid of her soon and he could answer her questions for now. "Ki is the energy force inside of everyone." 

"Even me?" 

"Yes, although yours is extremely weak, so you can't use it." 

May huffed a little at being called weak, but decided that compared to Piccolo, who had a very muscular form, she was pretty weak. 

They arrived soon at her house, but she was still a little afraid that those men would come back and so she asked, "What if those men come back?" 

"I saw some humans in blue uniforms take them away." 

May sighed in relief and said, "Thank you again, Piccolo. If you ever need anything let me know. I owe you my life." 

"Forget it," he said, and with that, took off towards his waterfall once again. 

May walked into her home and looked around. She noticed that a lamp had been knocked over and a side table had been moved. There was also the broken window to take care of. She sighed and got to work cleaning up. 

She covered the window with plastic until she could get it fixed and decided that she was tired and sore, but she had to get her mind off of things. She went to her study and sat down at her desk. Upon the desk was her computer and behind it was an entire bookshelf full of books written by someone called M. K. 

May turned the computer on and opened her files and began to write. She wrote for almost three hours until her hands were sore and worn from so much typing. 

'My editor is going to flip' she thought, saving what she had written so far and deciding that she needed a long, hot bath, and a good nights sleep in her own bed. 


	2. The Book

A/N: A little warning that Piccolo actually talks a lot more often. He is a little OOC, but will still retain his stand-offish and scary persona.   


**The Book**

  


About two months later: 

Piccolo sat under his usual tree in Capsule Corp's backyard during another one of the Z fighter's usual get-togethers, hosted by Bulma Briefs. 

He watched through half closed eyes as Goten and Trunks chased each other around the yard, Goku sat at the food table and ate constantly, and Chi-chi and Bulma talked about things. Vegeta leaned against the side of the house in his usual stance, growling at anyone that came to close, and Gohan was supposed to bring a friend when he arrived shortly. Krillin, Eighteen, Yamcha, Chaoutzu, Tien, Puar, Master Roshi and Oolong were also there. 

For some reason, Bulma and Chi-chi kept looking in his direction from time to time. He was getting a little frustrated at them and was about to go over and demand what they wanted when they got up and approached him. 

Piccolo stood up and opened his eyes, waiting for them to say what they wanted. Bulma spoke first. "Hey Piccolo, how are you doing?" 

"What do you want?" Piccolo asked, knowing that she wasn't just trying to make small talk. 

"All right," she drawled, "I wanted to ask if you knew someone with the initials M. K..?" 

Piccolo thought for a minute before replying, "Why?" 

"Well, I was reading this book," Bulma said, holding up a book, "and the person in here is very much like you, green skin and all." 

Piccolo grabbed the book from her hands and looked at the cover. It showed a woman with long, golden hair and an amazing figure, the kind only artwork portrayed, and a tall, green skinned man with green antennae poking out of his golden locks of hair. Other than the hair, the man looked very much like Piccolo. 

Piccolo scowled at the cover and snarled, "What is this about?" 

"Why don't you read it?" Chi-chi suggested, trying to keep herself from smiling as she had already read the book and knew what happened. It was, after all, a romance novel, and everyone knows what happens in those types of adult literature. She just couldn't picture Piccolo in such a compromising situation. 

Piccolo looked at her like she was nuts, which he had always thought she was, but decided that he had nothing better to do and wanted to know what this was all about. He sat down in his usual meditative position, thanked Kami that he was literate, and began to read the book. 

Bulma and Chi-chi smiled at each other and returned to the bench where they sat and gossiped. Vegeta and Goku got into a mini battle over the food, which Saiyan could eat more, and Goten and Trunks cheered them on. Gohan arrived soon after with a girl, causing Chi-chi to exclaim 'grandchildren!' at every turn. 

Gohan saw his mentor and best friend seated under his usual tree. As he pulled his friend along, he at first though Piccolo was meditating, but his head was bent and as they got closer, he saw that he was reading. Gohan approached him and said, "Hey Piccolo, it's good to see you." 

Piccolo looked up from the book and greeted his friend, "hey Gohan, who's your friend?" 

Gohan smiled widely and ushered his friend forward, "Piccolo, this is Videl." 

Piccolo just nodded his head when Videl said, "It's nice to meet you." She appeared a little nervous, which was normal considering she was talking to a tall, green Namek. 

"Hey Piccolo, what're you reading?" Gohan asked, noticing the book that he held. 

"Nothing," he replied, not really wanting people to know he was reading this type of book. He had just reached a part where Lola, the woman, was coming on heavily to Drum, the alien man, and he was just going along with it. Clothing was being removed at the moment and Piccolo wanted to know what was going to happen. 

Unfortunately, Gohan saw the cover of the book and exclaimed, "That looks kind of like you, except for the hair." 

"That's why I'm reading it," Piccolo said, when Videl noticed the cover also, and the title of the book. 

"Did you know that book is on the best sellers list? They sold over one million copies in the first two weeks of publication." 

Piccolo's eyes went wide at that. Then he thought about how the pathetic humans would just think the author had made the alien up, which was a possibility considering Piccolo didn't know that many people. 

"We'll let you get back to your reading Piccolo. I want to get some food before dad and Vegeta eat it all." Gohan ran over to the buffet table with Videl walking after him. 

About two hours later, the party was winding down and several people had left. All that remained were Bulma and her family because they lived here, and Goku, Chi-chi, Goten. Gohan had left to take Videl home. 

Piccolo had just finished the book when he walked over to Bulma and asked, "Who wrote this thing?" 

"I think I have a picture of the author on one of my other books. Wait here," she said, and rushed into the house. She came back a few minutes later with another book and turned to the back cover. "Here she is," she said, turning the book and handing it to Piccolo. 

Piccolo's eyes widened and he said, "I know her." 

"Really," Bulma exclaimed, "can you introduce me? I'm a really big fan." 

Piccolo scowled and took off. Bulma screeched in protest, "hey, bring back my book. It took me forever to find a copy." 

Bulma was still scowling when Vegeta walked up to her with the book with the author's picture in it that Piccolo had dropped on the ground. He looked at the cover and tilted his head saying, "hey woman, let's try this." 

Bulma looked at the cover and blushed, saying, "Vegeta!" 

Vegeta smirked, "What? Is it too much for you?" 

"Wait until everyone is gone," she whispered, gesturing to the Sons. 

Vegeta's head shot up and he shouted, "Everyone leave now!"   


  


Piccolo shot through the air, heading towards the house in the forest where that woman he had rescued lived. He couldn't believe that she had written some of that stuff about him. The compromising positions, the gentle gestures and the soft words were definitely not him. 

In the distance, Piccolo noticed clouds rolling in, darkening the already dimming horizon. A storm was approaching as he landed in the yard and stepped up to the front door. He pounded on the door and waited, standing with his arms crossed over his chest. 

The door opened slowly and a voice said, "I'm armed." 

"I don't care," he said, grabbing the bat that was about to be swung at him. 

May looked out and said, "Piccolo! What are you doing here? I didn't think I'd ever see you again." 

"I wanted to know what this is," he said, and handed her the book. 

May blushed and gestured for him to enter the dwelling. Piccolo stepped into the house, having to duck his head, and the door being closed behind him. "You see," she began, "after our encounter, it gave me a great idea for a story. I'm an author." 

"Hn," Piccolo said simply, waiting for her to continue. 

"My editor loved it and had it out in the stores in record time. People loved it." 

"I've noticed. I heard it was on the best seller's list." Piccolo said in reference to what Videl had told him. 

May smiled that another one of her stories was making people happy. "I'm sorry," she said, noticing that Piccolo was not happy, "but no one will know it's you. I doubt many people have even seen you, right?" 

"Hn," he said again, and May took that as a yes. 

Suddenly, the clouds opened and rain began to pour down. "Oh no," May groaned as she walked into what looked to be the kitchen. She came back with several pots and set them around the room. 

Piccolo looked at her questioningly until he felt a cold drop hit his head. Looking up, he saw that water was leaking through the roof. He stepped aside and May put a pot where he had just stood. "Why don't you get it fixed?" he asked. 

May looked at him, a little perturbed, and said, "I have all the stuff to fix it in the shed, but I just never have the time. For some reason, whenever I'm about to start, I get an idea and I have to write it down. I never get back to it." 

Piccolo was getting a little uncomfortable and decided that it was time he left. "I better get going," he said, and took a step towards the door. 

"But it's pouring outside," May said, "you can't go out in this weather." 

"I've been out in worse," he said, reaching for the doorknob. 

"Well, at least stay until it calms down a little. You can stay for dinner," May said, in an attempt to get him to stay. The fact was, she liked having him around and she didn't want to be alone again. She didn't like a lot of people around, but Piccolo was different; he seemed to be the uncomfortable one, whereas most of the time, she was very uncomfortable around others. 

"I don't need to eat," Piccolo said, turning from the door to regard the woman. 

"Really? How come?" She asked, curious about this alien. 

"I'm Namek. I only need water." 

"Oh," she said, trying to keep disappointment out of her voice. "Well, why don't you stay for water while I eat dinner?" 

Piccolo looked at her suspiciously. "Why don't you want me to leave?" He asked, eyeing her warily. 

May blushed a little under his scrutiny and said, eyes downcast, "I guess I like your company." 

Piccolo was taken aback by this. The only one who had ever enjoyed his company was Gohan while everyone else just ignored him, was afraid of him, or just wanted a good spar. 

"It is storming pretty badly," he said, trying to justify what he was about to say. "I guess I can stay for a little bit." 

May smiled and gestured him into the kitchen. The room also served as a dining room and had a small table setting for two. Piccolo sat in one of the chairs while May went about making herself dinner. She set a glass of water in front of Piccolo, and gave him a smile before turning back to her cooking. 

Piccolo had almost felt the inklings of a smile tugging at his lips when May had grinned at him. He sipped at his water and watched her work. She wasn't what humans would call beautiful, but she had several features that were considered nice. She had long, red hair that flamed down her back to just past her shoulders. Her eyes, he had noticed, were a lovely shade of green. 

She was short although next to his six feet six inches height almost everyone was short, but the top of her head came to the middle of his chest. He guessed that she was what people would call cute, but he had never been a good judge of human features. 

At the moment, she was wearing a dress with spaghetti straps that reached to her knees. It was bright with yellows and oranges in an array of patterns. 

May brought her plate filled with food to the table and sat across from Piccolo. It was nice to have someone for dinner even though that someone didn't eat. 

The dinner was quiet, but neither person really minded. They each had things on their minds, and the first thing spoken was by Piccolo when he noticed what she was eating. 

"That smells good," he remarked. He didn't need to eat, but he did every once in a while and chicken and white rice was one of his favorites. 

"Thank you," May said, surprised at the compliment. "Can you eat at all?" 

"Yes, but I usually don't." 

May got up and came back with a small plate with some rice and a little bit of chicken. "Here. I made plenty," she said, smiling brightly at him and returning to her seat. 

Piccolo tried a bit of it and said, "It's good." 

May smiled even brighter and continued to eat her own dinner. After the meal, she put the plates into the sink and looked back at Piccolo who had stood up. "It's stopped raining." 

He walked out of the kitchen and towards the front door. May followed closely behind and watched as Piccolo opened the door and prepared to leave. 

"Piccolo," May called, causing Piccolo to turn back, "would you, maybe, come visit me again sometime?" May knew she had too much hope to expect anything from Piccolo, but she generally liked his company. 

"Maybe," he said, and took off into the air, heading towards his cave. 


	3. The Roof

**The Roof**

Piccolo flew threw the air the next morning, heading towards Capsule Corp. He had to return Bulma's book and ask her a question. He wasn't entirely sure what these new emotions were, but he had the unmistakable urge to make sure that nothing untoward happened to this woman. He had felt similar when he had trained Gohan, but there was something different about May. 

Piccolo landed in the front yard of Capsule Corp and tapped on the door which sounded more like a pounding. The door opened after a few seconds and Piccolo scowled in annoyance. 

"Piccolo, what a pleasant surprise," Bulma's mother said and latched herself onto his arm. He was used to this every time, and had learned long ago that if he did anything to the woman, Bulma would yell at him, wounding his poor, sensitive ears. If he did anything to Bulma, he would have a pissed off Saiyan prince after him. 

"Where's Bulma?" He asked, trying to pull his arm from her amazingly strong grasp. 

"She's down in the lab fixing something or another," she said, "would you like something. I have plenty of water." 

"No," he said, extracting his almost numb arm and striding purposefully towards Bulma's lab. 

"If you need anything don't hesitate to ask," she called, waving after his retreating form. 

Piccolo almost sighed in relief, that woman grated on his nerves in a whole other way from Chi-chi or Bulma. He approached the door to Bulma's lab and knocked. Not waiting for permission, he opened the door and stepped inside. 

Bulma sat at a table, hunched over some piece of machinery, working meticulously. She didn't even look up at his entrance, so engrossed in her work, that she kept on mumbling about a certain Saiyan prince that needed to do something that he didn't think was physically possible. 

Finally tired of waiting after about two minutes, Piccolo cleared his throat which startled Bulma and caused her to drop the tool and the machine on the table. She looked up at him, clearly annoyed at the interruption, and said, "Don't do that! This is a delicate piece of machinery." 

"Hn," Piccolo said, not really caring at all if he had interrupted her work. He then removed something from his belt and handed it to her. 

Bulma smiled then and took the object, "Did you like it?" She asked in a sort of teasing tone. 

Piccolo just glared at her momentarily, not dignifying that with an answer, and decided to ask his own question. "How do you fix a roof?" 

Bulma looked taken aback by the odd question and just stared at him for a moment before asking, "Why?" 

Piccolo was getting annoyed now and crossed his arms across his muscular chest before saying, "Because I want to know." 

Bulma looked at him warily; suddenly intensely curious as to why he wanted to know such a thing. "That isn't an answer." 

"Yes, it is. Now are you going to tell me or not." 

"Fine, only if you tell me something." 

"What?" He asked, not wanting to tell her anything. 

"Did you really meet the author of this book?" 

Piccolo was a little surprised at such a simple questions and after analyzing it for any hidden agenda's, he decided to answer, "Yes." 

"Wow," Bulma exclaimed, her eyes shining like stars, "Do you think you could introduce us? You could bring her to the get-together next month." 

"Can you just answer my question now?" He huffed. 

Bulma came back down to earth and said, "oh, sure." She began rummaging around in a couple of drawers, all the while mumbling, "Where is it? I know I just used it the other day when Goku and Vegeta sparred over the house." 

Suddenly she stood up straight, a triumphant look on her face as she turned back to Piccolo, a capsule in her hand. "It's a robot that I designed especially for repairing buildings walls and the roof." 

She handed Piccolo the capsule, wanting to ask him another question but he turned around and began walking away. He said, "Thanks," and left without another word. 

Bulma, loving any gossip she could find, decided to call Chi-chi and fill her in on her suspicions. She picked up the phone and dialed; after two rings someone picked up and she heard Chi-chi holler, "Goten, take that thing outside . . . I don't care if it's your new friend, it belongs outside." 

"Hey Chi-chi," Bulma said, once the yelling had stopped. 

"Oh, hey Bulma, what's going on?" Chi-chi knew that Bulma only called about get-togethers or gossip and they had just attended a party so it had to be gossip. 

"Piccolo came by a few minutes ago and brought back my book and, get this, he actually knows the author." 

"You're kidding!" Chi-chi exclaimed. She had read some of Bulma's books and was always looking forward to the next one. They were magnificent stories about romance and love. 

"Nope, he actually admitted it, but he wouldn't introduce us," Bulma huffed, still a little upset over that. "Oh, and then he asked me something really unusual." 

"What?" 

"He asked me if I knew how to fix a roof. I mean, come on, the guy lives in a cave; why would he need to know how to fix a roof." 

"Maybe he's going to help someone." 

They thought about that for a minute before simultaneously saying, "Nah!" 

"Woman, where is my lunch?" They heard hollered throughout Capsule Corp. 

Bulma rolled her eyes, "I better go before 'his highness' has a fit," she said sarcastically. 

Chi-chi chuckled at that and said, "All right, but if anything else happens, you let me know." 

"You got it. Same goes for you." 

"Right, talk to you later." 

"Bye."   


***

  


At around noon, Piccolo arrived at the house in the woods occupied by May. He hovered in the air above the house, several feet up, debating whether or not to land. After careful consideration, and a strange feeling, he decided to head down, and landed before the front door. 

Just as his feet touched the ground, the front door opened, and May stepped out. She hadn't noticed him yet because she was rummaging in a purse as she made her way out. May closed the door and made sure it was locked before turning around abruptly and running straight into Piccolo. 

Piccolo wrapped his arms around her shoulders to keep her from falling, and after a few seconds, he released her, a mild blush on his cheeks that lasted only a second. She looked up abruptly and exclaimed, "Piccolo!" 

May blushed a little at the close contact and took a tentative step backwards. "What are you doing here?" 

Piccolo's mind went blank for a moment as he just stared at her. A slightly uncomfortable silence settled over them that seemed to last hours when only seconds had past. May spoke up then and explained, "I was just heading into town. I go there about once a month to check with my editor and pick up supplies." 

Piccolo just softly muttered, "Oh." 

"You can come with me if you want, but I don't think you're the type of person that likes to be around a lot of strangers. Kind of like me." May smiled up at him. 

Piccolo would have smiled back if it wasn't against his nature to do so. He just said, "Yeah, I barely tolerate some of my so-called friends." 

"Well, I'll see you later then," she said, and began walking towards a white capsule car. She entered the vehicle and waved goodbye to him as she made her way down a small country road that cut through the forest. 

Piccolo stood there until she was out of sight, and sighed. Why was he acting like such an idiot in front of her? He was very confused, but decided to save his thoughts for later during meditation. He walked behind the house and over to a little shed situated in the backyard. There was a small padlock on the door, but with a little burst of ki, the lock was off and the door was open. Inside was all the material needed to fix a rood. 

Piccolo took out the capsule and pressed the button, throwing it to the ground. In a puff of smoke, a robot emerged and said in a mechanically monotone voice, "What are my orders?" 

"Use those materials," Piccolo pointed into the shed, "to fix that roof," he pointed to the house. The robot then began to get to work. It worked swiftly and mechanically, but after two hours, the roof had been repaired. 

Piccolo recapsuled the robot and stood in front of the house, admiring the work and making sure nothing had gone wrong. Just then, a car pulled up and May stepped out, a little surprised to see Piccolo. 

"You didn't stand here the whole time did you?" She asked, a little worried that he might be somewhat obsessive. 

"No," he declared, glaring lightly at her. 

"Oh, good," she said relieved. 

May opened the back of the car and began grabbing out several brown bags filled with food items and other things. There were several heavy ones and Piccolo decided to help by grabbing about six of them at a time. 

May opened the door and led him through to the kitchen where he placed the bags on the table and floor. "Thanks," May said, smiling up at him again. "So what have you been doing since I left?" She asked, as she began putting the groceries away. 

"Your roof won't leak anymore when it rains," Piccolo stated. 

May looked up at him, shocked, and ran back outside. When she came back in she stood before Piccolo and looked up at him. Before he knew it, she had her arms wrapped around his waist and was giving him a great big hug. 

Piccolo couldn't move; he was completely stunned. The only other person to hug him with such familiarity was Gohan, and even then, after a few seconds, Piccolo would grunt and tell him to knock it off. 

At the moment, Piccolo's emotions were in turmoil. Who was this woman that could make him become an even better person than Gohan had already made him? 

"Thank you so much Piccolo!" May exclaimed, and after a few seconds, she released him. 

"Yeah, yeah," he said, not wanting to appear soft, "It was nothing. A robot did all the work, I just supervised." 

"Well, you are still a wonderful guy for doing this for me," she said, continuing to put the groceries away. 

Piccolo blushed lightly when her back was turned, not wanting her to think him weak. While working, May decided to start just simple conversation, trying to find out a little more about this strange man that had come into her life. 

"Where did you get such a great robot?" 

"Bulma gave it to me." 

"Bulma? What's her last name?" 

Piccolo thought for a minute; it wasn't often that he thought about such a thing. Then, he remembered Vegeta saying once, "What, is your whole family named after underwear?" 

"Briefs." 

May looked up for the second time, a little startled. "The president of Capsule Corp?!" 

"Yeah." 

"Wow, you know some pretty important people," she said, returning, once again, to her work, "Know anyone else famous?" 

"I don't know." 

"Well, name some of the people you know." 

"Why?" 

"I just want to know more about you. You're still a mystery man to me." 

May finished putting away the items and sat down at the kitchen table to take a breather. Piccolo sat opposite her and thought about the other Z fighters. 

"There's the Son's, Goku and his sons Gohan and Goten. Krillin, Yamcha-" 

At Yamcha's name, she interrupted, "The baseball player?" 

"He plays baseball?" Piccolo asked; he didn't care what the others did when not fighting. 

"He is only one of the best baseball players of all time." 

"Whatever," Piccolo uttered, and began speaking again, "Roshi-" 

May interrupted, yet again, causing Piccolo to glare at her in annoyance; it wasn't often he talked this much and she wouldn't let him finish. "Master Roshi? The turtle hermit?" 

"Yeah, that's the guy." 

"Wow, and wait, that Goku once won the World's Martial Arts Tournament, right?" 

Piccolo glared at her a little harder at the mention of the World Tournament, and continued before she remembered anyone named Piccolo had once participated. "Anyway, there's also Vegeta, his son Trunks, Tien, Chaoutzu, and Yajirobe. Though I wouldn't ever ask Yajirobe to help unless the opponent was winning and you needed something for it to kill as a distraction." 

"That's not very nice Piccolo," May said at his description of one of his friends. "But you sure know a lot of pretty famous people. I would love to have that many friends," she said in a sort of dreamy voice. 

"I guess," Piccolo then noticed that the sun was setting. They had been talking for a while now. "I have to go now," he said as he stood up and walked towards the front door. 

"All right, come and visit again soon Piccolo," May said as she waved goodbye to him and watched him fly off into the sunset. 


	4. The Party: Part I

**The Party**

About a month had passed and Piccolo had been visiting May about two to three times a week. May, having never been a very social person, loved having someone to talk with and it seemed to make her happier. Her editor even told her that her work was better than ever and he hoped she continued to write even more. 

May was in the middle of writing a sequel to the book that had a Piccolo look-a-like on the cover. She hadn't told Piccolo yet, but she wanted it to be a surprise, and she hoped he would like it. He seemed to have liked the first one and she wanted to use this sequel to inform him about her feelings. 

For the past few weeks, May had looked forward to Piccolo's visits even more, and was slightly depressed when he wasn't around. She wasn't sure if his species could love, but she sure wanted to try. Unfortunately, she was a very shy person, and wasn't sure if she could take the possible rejection. 

Unknown to her, Piccolo was still a little confused about his emotions. He knew that he had some feelings of love for the woman, and he had been a little protective of her over the past few weeks. He visited often, not always letting her acknowledge his presence, and helped around her house with repairs or heavy lifting. She appeared to enjoy his presence, and she now knew more about himself than anyone else, with the exception of Gohan. 

Today, Piccolo was going to surprise May with a little trip that he hoped she would enjoy. The way she had acted when he told her about knowing Bulma had made him think that maybe she would like to be introduced. Bulma wanted to meet her as well, and this trip might help her know more people. She had told him that the only people she really knew were her editor and him. 

As he landed in her front yard, he saw that she was kneeling over in the garden, pulling out weeds and pruning her plants. If Piccolo was a different kind of man, he would have been turned on when he saw her but end up in the air like that, but he just wasn't that kind of man. He cleared his throat to get her attention. 

May smiled at the sound, as she pulled one last weed and stood up, brushing her hands off on her jeans. "What brings you by so early Piccolo?" she asked, noticing by her watch that it was only ten in the morning. 

Piccolo had used all morning to work up enough courage and it was now slowly slipping away. Before it could go completely, he said, "Do you want to go to the Z fighter's get-together today?" 

May's eyes opened wide and a smile spread across her face, "You mean I get to meet all those people you talk about, especially Gohan?" 

"Yes," he stated, smiling on the inside that he had made her so happy. 

"You bet I want to go. What time does it start?" 

"Noon," he answered, and watched as she looked down at herself. 

May looked at the clothing she wore and almost yelled, "That only gives me about an hour and a half to get ready! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" She asked, hurrying into the house to get ready. 

Piccolo didn't get a chance to answer as she practically flew through her house. He followed at a more sedately pace, taking his usual meditative pose in the middle of the living room as he waited for her to finish. About half an hour later, he heard the water cut off and stood up. 

He stood there for a moment, not really thinking about anything, and soon found himself standing outside of her bedroom door. The door was slightly ajar and he could see the back of her towel clad body as she rummaged through a dresser. The towel soon left her form and his jaw dropped at the beautiful body he beheld in his sight. As she was about to turn, he was gone in a flash, faster than Goku to an all-you-can-eat buffet. 

May thought she saw something at the door, but when she looked there was nothing but the hall and empty air. She shrugged her shoulders, telling herself that it was nothing to worry about with Piccolo here, and continued to get dressed. 

Piccolo waited another half hour before May came out, and that was plenty of time for him to get himself back under control. As she walked out, his jaw almost dropped again at the sight of the beauty standing before him. She wore a light peach/pink gown made of chiffon with a simple cut. It had strapped sleeves and the front had a gentle circle cut for the neck that hinted at cleavage but didn't show anything, and it was snug around her torso. The skirt went down to mid-thigh, and was very loose and airy with the hem crimped so it fluttered when she moved. She wore a pair of white sandals and a light white sweater to keep out the chill from the autumn wind. Her long strawberry blond hair was pulled back by a pail pink headband and the rest cascaded midway down her back. 

Piccolo looked into her lovely blue eyes and almost lost himself until she spoke up. "How do I look?" She asked, twirling around once. 

"You look fine," he said simply, no emotion in his voice. 

May could see something in his eyes and was happy with his response as she looked at the clock. "Gosh, did I really take an hour and a half to get ready?" 

"Yes, and we'd better get going now," he said, rousing himself from his preoccupied state. May picked up her wallet and keys from a table by the door and put them in a hidden pocket. 

They stepped outside and May asked, "Are you going to fly me there?" 

"That was the plan." 

"All right, but mind my skirt. I don't want the wind to blow it up," she said, and took a step towards him. 

Piccolo carefully picked her up, placing his arm behind her knees, making sure to hold the skirt in the back. His other hand went to her back and he rose, taking her along with him. May held the front of her skirt with one hand and put the other around Piccolo's neck, even though she knew Piccolo would never let her fall. 

As they flew, Piccolo thought he should remind May of a few things. "Remember to ignore Vegeta, stay away from Roshi and Oolong, and get to the food before Goku." 

May chuckled and said, "I remember what you've told me about them. They can't be that bad." 

"Don't say I didn't warn you." 

**********

Piccolo could sense that several people had arrived already, and as they approached the large domed building, he began descending towards the ground. Several people looked up when they sensed him, and were surprised when it looked like he held someone in his arms. 

As he landed, Gohan rushed up to him first, and said, "Hey Piccolo, great to see you again. Who's your friend?" 

Piccolo set May down on her feet and was about to answer when Bulma rushed over to them and exclaimed, "Wow, aren't you M.K., the author?" 

May smiled at the blue-haired woman and said, "Yes, that's me. You have read my books?" 

"Read your books? You're my favorite author!" 

May blushed and looked at the ground, suddenly very shy at the amount of praise she was receiving. When she looked up again, she asked, "You can call me May. Are you Bulma Briefs, the president of Capsule Corporation?" 

"Yeah, that's me," she said, her head held high in a smug manner. She was very proud of her status, but she was very excited to meet May. "How come you're here with Piccolo?" She asked, suddenly wondering how Piccolo came to know such a famous person that Bulma didn't. 

May looked back at Piccolo who was now conversing with a black-haired young man and said, "Piccolo invited me. I hope it's all right that I'm here." 

"Of course it is!" Bulma exclaimed, then she leaned in close and whispered, "I'd rather have you here than some of the regulars that come." 

They chuckled at that and May turned to Piccolo. Piccolo then said, "May, this is Gohan." 

"Gohan," May said, shaking the boy's hand, "I've heard so much about you." 

"Good things I hope," Gohan laughed, looking up at his former sensei. 

"Of course," May chuckled politely. She liked Gohan immediately. 

May followed Gohan as he returned to the group scattered around the backyard. He made her blush when he called out to everyone, "Hey everyone, this is Piccolo's friend May!" 

Several people waved or said a polite hello or welcome. She continued to follow Gohan over to a woman with black hair held up in a bun, and a man with wild ebony hair. "May, this is my mom, Chi-chi, and my dad, Goku." 

"It's a pleasure to meet you, May," Chi-chi greeted politely and shook her hand. Goku just waved a hand, which was quite amazing considering he didn't stop eating the whole time. Chi-chi just shook her head in embarrassment of her husband's bad manners. "Have a seat." She said, gesturing to the bench she sat upon. 

"Thank you," May said, sitting down, and watched as Piccolo actually sat down next to her. 

Everyone was very surprised at this because he usually just stood against a tree or building, or sat in meditation. May didn't think anything about it, she was just happy to have him nearby around all of these strangers. Bulma took a seat in a nearby chair. 

"I love your work," Chi-chi complimented, "Bulma has lent me all your books. Is there another one coming out soon?" 

"Well, I am in the middle of writing a new one," May said, hoping that they wouldn't ask her too much about it before she had a chance to tell Piccolo. 

"Think you can give us a preview?" Bulma asked hopefully. 

"I'm afraid not, you'll have to wait until it's published." 

"Awe, that's all right," Chi-chi said, "I like to be surprised." 

"Looks like the foods ready to come out. Let's get lunch," Bulma said, upon seeing her mother enter the backyard with a large tray laden with food. 

"Yeah, let's hurry before the Saiyan's get to it," Chi-chi said, rising to help get the food out. 

"Saiyans?" May asked to no one in particular, but Piccolo heard with his exceptional hearing. 

After collecting her food, May returned to her seat beside Piccolo and smiled at him before beginning to eat her lunch. The others soon joined her and she watched, amazed, as Goku, Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks, and Goten each brought at least enough food for ten people each, to the table and proceeded to wolf it down in record time. 

Piccolo noticed her stares and leaned down to whisper, "Those are Saiyans." 

"Oh," she said simply, and then noticed that someone was speaking to her. 

"How exactly did you meet Piccolo?" Yamcha asked from his seat across from her. 

The others, except the Saiyans, stopped in their conversations and eating to listen as she said, "He saved my life." She looked up at Piccolo, pride and love only for him, shining in her eyes. 

Piccolo had his eyes closed and his arms folded, but he was hearing everything said about him. When May turned back to Yamcha, she continued, "I live in the forest a couple of miles from where he was, and some men broke into my house and I hit one of them in the head with a bat and knocked him unconscious, but the other one chased me through the woods. After a while, the man caught up with me, but Piccolo helped me, but I didn't see him, I just continued to run. But somehow, I ended up in a cave and it just happened to be his." 

When she had finished her story, some of the others were looking in Piccolo's direction with amazement, but Gohan was looking at him with respect and pride. Piccolo didn't see any of this, for he still had his eyes closed, but his chest was puffed out just a little more. 

"Wow, that's pretty amazing," Yamcha said, but May just cocked her head in confusion. 

"Why is it amazing?" She asked. 

"Well, this is Piccolo we're talking about. He's not exactly the sort of person that goes around saving people," he chuckled. 

"Well, why not? I think he'd make a great hero. He's already got the cape," she said, half serious, half joking. She laughed a little at the cape part, along with several others. 

Piccolo would have killed, or at least seriously harmed, anyone else that joked about him, but with her, his cheeks colored lightly and he turned his head away slightly, hoping no one would notice. 


	5. The Party: Part II

A/N: If you like Yamcha at all, I'm sorry, but for those of you who hate him, I'm sure you'll enjoy this. Also, there is some bad language. 

**The Party: Part II**

Unfortunately for Piccolo, Gohan had seen him blush for that one second and he was now curious about the real relationship between his former sensei and this woman. If there was something going on between them, Gohan wished him all the luck in the world. But, knowing Piccolo, he wanted to make sure that he didn't do anything to screw it up like hiding from his emotions. 

After the food was consumed and the group was just lounging around the backyard, playing games, sparring, or just idly talking, Yamcha, who had drank just a little too much, decided to sit beside May. Piccolo had accepted a challenge by Goku, and the two were now have a friendly spar. May just sat and watched them from a safe distance beneath a tree as the two fighters danced back and forth. She was amazed at their skill and ability as she had never witnessed such a fight. 

"Hey May, what's really going on between you and Piccolo?" Yamcha asked with a slight slur to his voice, but quiet enough so that no one but May heard. 

May didn't look away from the fight and therefore didn't notice his state and said, "We are just friends. Why?" 

"Well, you're kinda cute and I wanted to see if you'd go to dinner with me sometime." 

It was then that May looked at the man, a slightly surprised look on her face which turned apologetic. "I'm sorry, but I like someone, and I'm hoping that he'll ask me out." 

May saw his face get red and an angry snarl appeared as he said, "Why would anyone ask you out?" he sneered, "I only felt sorry for you and figured I'd do you a favor. You should be lucky I even bothered. Whoever this guy is, he probably thinks you're an ugly bitch like I do." He said and then got up and walked away. 

May's eyes began to water and she tried to think about how it wasn't true, but she had always been a little sensitive and couldn't stop the tears from coming. She tried to be quiet, but a small whimper escaped her lips and the sensitive ears of Piccolo were the only ones to pick it up. 

Piccolo stopped in mid-punch and dropped his arm as he stood straight up. Goku stopped immediately and asked, "What's wrong Piccolo?" 

Without a word, Piccolo scanned the yard for May and found her sitting beneath a tree. He walked over to her, leaving a very confused Goku who just shrugged his shoulders and went to see if there were any leftovers. 

When Piccolo arrived at the tree that May sat beneath, he noticed that her face was buried in her hands and her shoulders were shaking. He kneeled down to her level and asked, "What's wrong?" 

May didn't respond and just turned away from him, not wanting him to see her cry. Unfortunately, he was stubborn and wouldn't leave her alone until he knew what was bothering her. When he had left her, she had been happy, but now, she wasn't, and he was determined to find out why. 

Piccolo reached over and carefully pulled her hands away from her face. He grew angry when he saw the tear streaks down her face and immediately felt the need to kill whatever or whoever had done this to her. 

"What happened?" 

May looked up into his eyes and asked a question she needed to know, "Do you think I'm ugly?" 

Piccolo was a little taken aback by the question, but he didn't show it, and still kept his gentle hold on her wrists. 'Why would she ask such a thing?' he wondered. He decided that he needed to answer the question to make her feel better and to find out what had made her cry. "You're not ugly. Who said such a thing?" 

May turned her head away, embarrassed about the way she had acted, but he removed his hand from her wrist and turned her face back to him. "Who said it?" He asked sternly, wanting and needing to know. 

"Yamcha," she whispered, almost inaudible to the human ear, but loud enough to be picked up quite well by a Namekian ear. 

Piccolo said, "That bastard wouldn't know beauty if it punched him in the face." He then stood up abruptly and walked in a straight beeline towards Yamcha leaving May to think about what he had just said. 

Piccolo had just called her beautiful. She smiled, her tears long forgotten, and her heart raised so high, she felt like she could fly. 

Piccolo walked up to Yamcha, who was now chatting with Krillin. No one seemed to noticed the pissed off look of the very strong Namek as he stood before them. Faster than either of them could register, Piccolo grabbed Yamcha by the throat and lifted him up so that they were now face to face which left the human dangling about a foot off the ground. 

It was then that some of the others noticed and Goku walked up to him to see what was going on. "Uh . . . Piccolo, what's wrong?" 

Piccolo said nothing and just squeezed a little tighter causing Yamcha to gasp for air and claw at the hand that now held him. Between gasps he tried to speak, "What . . . please . . . air . . ." 

Piccolo growled in anger at his pathetic whimpering. It was then that May came out of her stupor and noticed what Piccolo was doing. She wiped the remainder of her tears from her cheeks and rushed over to the gathering group who were still a little confused as to why Piccolo wanted to kill Yamcha. 

When May reached his side, she grabbed Piccolo's unoccupied arm and said, "It's all right Piccolo. Just put him down. I'm alright." 

Most of the group understood now and could guess what happened. Goku, Goten, and Trunks were now the only ones still a little confused as to what was going on. The others just figured that Yamcha had done or said something to May and Piccolo had found out about it. It was then that they began thinking that something more was going on between the two. 

Piccolo growled a little, Yamcha still struggling in his grasp, as May said, "Come on Piccolo. Just put him down, please?" 

Piccolo looked down at May, her face upturned towards him, and her eyes showing her wish for him to not kill him. He couldn't help put soften at the sight and turned back to Yamcha. He lowered the human back to the ground so that he now stood on his own two feet, but before he could catch his breath, Piccolo pulled back his arm and proceeded to punch Yamcha in the face. 

Yamcha flew back towards the Capsule Corp building and proceeded to leave a large dent in the side before sliding down to the ground in a heap, unconscious. No one seemed to want to go help him, for they didn't know if that would make Piccolo mad or not. He just turned around and walked back to the tree May had sat under before. He then sat in his usual meditative position and closed his eyes, apparently meditating. 

May stood there for a moment, completely stunned at what Piccolo had done. The others were just as stunned, but Goku decided to see if Yamcha was still alive. He walked over and could see that the man was still breathing, so he told the others, "He's breathing." 

"Well, that's good," Bulma said, "can you take him inside and put him in a spare room." 

"Sure thing Bulma," he said, and picked Yamcha up and carried him inside. 

Bulma walked over to May, who now had a slight smile on her face, and asked, "Um, what happened exactly?" 

May didn't want to say much, so she just said, "Yamcha said something mean to me, and Piccolo found out." 

"Ok," Bulma said, suddenly getting a great idea. They would make a great couple, but Piccolo was probably a little confused because of his emotional situation. But, in her opinion, Piccolo had been alone far too long and even he deserved some happiness in his life. 

Gohan's thoughts were along the same lines, and he was determined to speak with Piccolo soon on the subject of relationships because he was pretty sure that his former sensei knew nothing about such things. He was right. 

Piccolo sat under the tree, trying to meditate but not getting anywhere. His thoughts kept wondering back to what had just happened. Why had he done such a thing? He had felt a great need to protect her and her feelings. He had wanted to make her happy again. 

He had called her beautiful . . . 

She had to know by now how he felt after all this, but he still was unsure. What was he going to do? 

Just as Goku had returned and the others were once again talking among themselves, the clouds that had been quietly moving in for the past hour opened up and poured down on them. Everyone was soaking wet by the time they got inside, and Bulma's mother had plenty of towels for the women who couldn't use their ki. 

Vegeta couldn't help but look at the way Bulma's dress clung to her form, while Goku was looking the same way at Chi-chi, and Krillin couldn't take his eyes off of Eighteen, who hadn't dried herself off yet. 

The perverts of the group, namely Roshi and Oolong, both had nosebleeds, but decided that they didn't want to make the Saiyan's mad, or Eighteen for that matter, and had settled for staring at May. 

Unfortunately for them, Piccolo noticed and didn't like it one bit. He put his hand on her head and materialized a gi similar to his. It was dry and she looked up at him, smiling, and said, "Thank you." 

Piccolo just nodded and walked into the living room where the others were congregating. Bulma led Chi-chi and Eighteen upstairs, much to the chagrin of their mates/husbands, and they got into some drier clothing. 

On the way down, Bulma checked on Yamcha and noticed him still alive and asleep, but there was some dried blood on his face from his nose and a cut on his cheek. She let him be and continued her way downstairs. 

They talked about several things, and the storm outside died down. Krillin and Eighteen had to leave first, to get Marron home, so Roshi and Oolong left as well. Goten was sleeping over with Trunks so the two went up to Trunks' room when it got late. The other Son's left soon after, followed immediately by May and Piccolo. 

"It was very nice meeting you all," May said as her and Piccolo got ready to leave. 

"It was great meeting you too. We should get together some time soon," Bulma said. 

"I'd like that," May remarked and gave Bulma her telephone number. "Give me a call soon and we'll get together." 

Piccolo lifted May up and took off as May waved to Bulma and Bulma waved back. 

During the flight, May curled up to Piccolo's chest and soon drifted off to sleep. The day had been very hectic and she felt completely at peace in his arms. 

Piccolo was a little surprised that she felt this safe with him. He pulled her a little closer and flew on. When he arrived at her house, he didn't really want to wake her up, but he had no choice. 

"May," he whispered, not wanting to startle her. He shook her lightly and her eyes fluttered open to regard him. "You're home." 

May looked up at him and smiled as he set her down to stand before her front door. "Thank you for a wonderful day," she said as she unlocked her door and opened it. 

"You're welcome," he said, and was surprised when May stood on her toes and kissed him lightly on the cheek. She then stepped inside her home and shut the door. 

He stood there for a moment, his hand reaching up to his cheek. After a few moments, he noticed that the lights inside at gone out and he flew off to his cave. He lay down on his bed, his thoughts on that wonderful woman in his life, as he drifted off into a pleasantly dream-filled sleep. 


	6. The Advice

**The Advice**

The following week, Bulma called May up and invited her and Chi-chi to go on a little (yeah right!) shopping spree. May drove over to Capsule Corp around noon, and met up with the girls who greeted her in a friendly fashion. She had never really had girlfriends to just hang out with and was plenty happy about the situation. 

Meanwhile, Piccolo had gone on a little sparring excursion with Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Trunks, and Goten. At the moment, he was sitting on a rock beneath the fighting forms of Vegeta and Goku, and watched Trunks and Goten play some kind of game on the ground. Gohan was sitting nearby on the grass, watching his father battle. 

Gohan looked over at Piccolo and noticed that the Namek was not really paying any attention to the fighting and he wasn't even meditating, which was very unusual. He smirked slightly, a side effect of hanging around Vegeta too much, and decided to see what he could do to help out his mentor in the relationship department. 

"Hey Piccolo," he said, causing the Namek to look over at him, "How do you feel about May?" He decided to get right to the point and was rewarded by Piccolo's eyes widening slightly. He would have sputtered but that just wasn't Piccolo. 

"Why?" he asked, not really wanting or having an answer to give. 

"Because you seemed to really like her at the party last week, and she likes you. So, when are you going to ask her out?" 

Piccolo was getting a little uncomfortable, but didn't show it a bit as he suggested, "Why don't you go spar or something?" he gestured to the two children wrestling around on the ground. 

"Why don't you answer my question? Are you afraid?" 

Piccolo did sputter then and became slightly angry, "I am not afraid of any question." 

"Then answer it." 

"I . . . can't," he practically whispered, so low that Gohan almost didn't hear. 

"Why not?" 

"Because I don't know how I feel about her," Piccolo said, hoping that none of the others decided to come over and overhear what was being said. He made sure to keep his senses on all of their energy signatures so that he knew where they were at all times. 

"Well, it's kinda obvious that she really likes you." 

"Really? How come?" 

"At the party last week, after you knocked out Yamcha, she was smiling at you." 

"She was?" 

"Yeah, and I bet if you asked, she'd like you to take her out somewhere on a date." 

"A date?" Piccolo asked, nervousness seeping into his voice. "Where would I take her?" 

"Oh, I don't know. Somewhere nice, I guess, but you don't exactly blend in so it can't be too public. Wouldn't want to start a riot," Gohan chuckled at that, but Piccolo wasn't really listening anymore. 

He also didn't notice when Goku and Vegeta landed when he asked Gohan, "Are you sure she smiled?" 

Vegeta thought that this was a great chance to tease the Namek and so he asked, "Hey, Namek, where's your mate today?" He knew that Bulma had asked her and Kakarrot's mate to go shopping. 

Piccolo looked up sharply at Vegeta, cursing himself for his lack of focus, and snarled, "She's not my mate." 

Vegeta smirked, "Awe, is the poor Namek afraid to make a move." 

Piccolo growled, "Shut up Vegeta!" 

Vegeta's smirk widened and he was a little surprised that Bulma had been right. She had told him that she thought Piccolo and May would make a great couple and that she believed they already liked each other, they just needed a push in the right direction. 

"Hey Piccolo," Goku began, "I think you and May would make a great couple." 

Piccolo was now embarrassed beyond belief that everyone seemed to want to give him advice about love. He groaned and lowered his head into his hands, not wanting anyone to see the possible blush that might be staining his cheeks. 

"He's shy about asking her out," Gohan told the two men. 

Piccolo's head turned and he glared at Gohan who just ignored him. 

"Why? He should just go up to her and tell her. She already likes him," Goku said, surprising everyone that he had picked up on her feelings. 

"That weak female does seem to have some sort of feelings for you," Vegeta ground out, trying to seem as though he didn't care in the slightest. 

"Why would she care anything for me?" Piccolo asked in an offhanded way. 

"I don't know. She's probably just crazy and has a thing for green aliens," Vegeta said. 

"No, Piccolo, you're not that bad a guy. I like you," Goku said, smiling in his usual way. 

"Dad's right," Gohan said, "You're a nice guy now and she probably sees the good in you the same way I do." 

~~~~~ 

Meanwhile, in the Orange City Mall, Bulma, Chi-chi, and May were seated in the food court having a snack while they rested from their already hours of shopping. Bulma had several capsules full of bags, while Chi-chi and May carried about two bags each. 

"Hey May, what's the deal with you and Piccolo?" Bulma asked, wanting to test her matchmaking skills. 

"What do you mean? We're friends," she said, blushing a little under Bulma and Chi-chi's scrutiny. 

"I think he likes you as more than a friend," Chi-chi remarked, earning another blush from May (she does that a lot). 

"I don't know . . ." 

"Of course he does. Why else would he have stood up for you against Yamcha like that?" Bulma explained. 

"You think so?" 

"Yeah," Chi-chi began, "He's not the type of guy to just go around defending people's honor for no reason." 

"He definitely has feelings for you," Bulma said, "How do you feel about him?" 

"I'm not sure," May blushed and whispered, "I think . . . I love him." 

"Wow," Chi-chi was a little stunned at the declaration, but decided that it might be for the best, "When are you going to tell him how you feel?" 

May's face turned a beet red and she stuttered, "I-I d-d-don't think I-I could j-just tell him." 

"Why not? I'm sure he'd say he feels the same way," Bulma wondered. 

"Well, I kinda have an idea about how to tell him without actually having to face him." 

"Really? How?" Bulma asked curiously. 

"You see," she said, leaning closer so no one could overhear. Bulma and Chi-chi both leaned closer as well, both drowning in curiosity. "In my next book, I wrote about . . ." 

~~~~~ 

"Come on Piccolo, she's just a woman. You don't have to be scared of her," Gohan said, trying to make his former sensei confess. 

"I am not afraid of some weak human female," Piccolo practically hollered, not wanting to show any weakness in front of these Saiyan's. 

"Yeah, right," Vegeta scoffed, "Then you can just go over there, and take her as your mate." 

"Vegeta," Goku scolded, "Piccolo doesn't have to do that. He just has to tell her how he feels." 

"That is not as easy as it sounds dad," Gohan said, a slightly apprehensive look on his face, "Just coming out and saying how you feel is a bit frightening." 

"And how would you know that brat?" Vegeta asked, an amused smirk gracing his lips as Gohan blushed and lowered his head. 

"No reason." 

"Come on Gohan," Goku began, "Who's the girl?" 

Gohan mumbled something that no one caught so Piccolo asked, "What was that Gohan?" 

"I like Videl," he whispered, blushing further and trying to hide his face. 

Piccolo and Vegeta both smirked, while Goku looked a little confused and asked, "But I thought she was always chasing you around trying to find out who you are?" 

"She is, but she's strong and tough and . . ." he trailed off and blushed even further when he realized how much of a lovesick fool he sounded like. 

~~~~~ 

The girls arrived back at Capsule Corp right around dinner time and Bulma invited Chi-chi and May to stay for a few more hours and eat. They accepted and by the time dinner was ready, the guys had returned. 

Everyone took a seat at the dining room table, even Piccolo, though he only received a glass of water. They had some friendly conversation, mainly among the women about what they had purchased that day, and after the meal, they went out to the living room. 

Piccolo got up and headed for the front door when Bulma asked, "Hey Piccolo, leaving so soon?" 

Piccolo turned back and answered, "Dende needs something and I said I'd stop by today. I want to get there before it gets dark." 

"Oh, well, why don't you take May home; it will save her a few hours drive and she'll get to meet Dende." 

May gave Bulma a completely shocked look and tried to signal her without Piccolo noticing, but she stopped when he turned to her and asked, "I will take you home if you would like." 

"I'd like that. I've wanted to meet Dende," she said, and proceeded to say goodbye to everyone as she stepped outside with Piccolo. 

Piccolo picked May up and flew on towards the lookout. 

"What was that all about woman?" Vegeta asked when Bulma reentered the house. 

"Don't they just make such a cute couple," she squealed along with Chi-chi as the two left the room to talk about girl stuff. 

Vegeta shook his head and motioned Kakarrot to follow him to the while Trunks, Goten, and Gohan went somewhere to play a game. 


	7. The Lookout

**The Lookout**

"So, tell me about Dende?" May asked, wanting to know more about the god she was about to meet. Piccolo had told her the Dende was now the guardian of the planet, but she wanted to know more about the person. 

"He's a good kid. He took over after Kami left," Piccolo said. 

"Why did Kami leave?" 

"Well . . ." he wasn't sure if he should tell her about that, but he couldn't lie to her. "When the androids attacked the planet, he had to fuse with his other half to become whole, and strong enough to fight." 

"Wow, what happened afterwards?" 

"He can't un-fuse, so he's now integrated into one person with his other half." 

"I'd love to hear the whole story some day," May said, knowing that there was more to it than that. She didn't want to push him, but one day, she hoped that he would trust her enough to tell her everything. 

They approached the lookout after some time, and Piccolo began his upward ascent. May watched the pole pass in fascination. "We're going to the top of this pole?" She asked. 

"Not exactly," he began explaining, "At the top is Korin's, he grows Sensu beans." 

"Sensu beans?" 

"It's a magic bean that heals any injury instantly. Anyway, above that, floating high in the sky is the lookout, where the guardian lives." 

"Wow, you have a very interesting life," May said, in awe. "I have an idea for a new book, but I need a little more information, can you help me?" 

"What do you need to know?" 

"I need anything you know about Saiyans." 

Piccolo was a little surprised, but said, "All right, I'll tell you what I know tomorrow afternoon." 

"Ok," May said, and noticed that they were fast approaching the floating structure. 

As they landed on the white tile, she noticed how vast the structure actually was. She was in awe at the magnificent building situated in one area, and as she walked around a little, she noticed that they were being approached by two people. 

One, she noticed, looked similar to Piccolo; he was at least the same species. The other was a short, midnight black man. The Namek wore long robes and carried a walking staff. He spoke up by saying, "Welcome Piccolo, who's your friend?" 

"Hello Dende, this is May. May, this is the guardian Dende and Mr. Popo." 

"It's a pleasure to meet you," May said in polite tone, "I've never met a god before." 

"And I have never met such a lovely and polite woman before. Welcome to the lookout." 

"Thank you," she blushed at the compliment. 

"What did you need me for?" Piccolo asked in annoyance. 

"Ah, yes. Please, follow me. Mr. Popo, why don't you show May around?" 

"Sure Dende. Right this way miss," Popo said, as he led May on a tour. 

As soon as they were out of sight, Mr. Popo asked, "How did you happen to meet Piccolo?" 

"He saved me from some bad men that were attacking me." 

Popo was surprised at this, but said nothing more and continued on with the tour. 

Meanwhile, Dende was speaking with Piccolo. "I have been sensing that something will happen. Something bad and I wanted to let you know." 

"What do you think it could be?" 

"I'm not sure, but I hope its nothing too bad. The planet has been through so much all ready." Dende said in a sad tone. 

"That's true, but we can't anticipate evil." 

"Now that that's settled, who is this May woman?" 

Piccolo suddenly had the urge to growl. Why was everyone getting into his business? Instead, he said, "Just some woman I saved in the forest. It's no big deal." 

"Of course it's a big deal. It's not everyday Piccolo gets a new friend, let alone, a girlfriend." 

"She is not my girlfriend," he growled in a low voice, hoping May wasn't around at the moment. 

Dende had a very skeptical look on his face, but he didn't say anything as they returned to the open area of the lookout. A few minutes later, May and Mr. Popo returned. 

"This place is amazing," she exclaimed to Piccolo. 

"I'm glad you enjoyed the tour. You are welcome anytime," Dende said. 

"Thank you." 

"Let's go," Piccolo said to May, and she stepped closer to him. 

"I'll see you later then Dende; you too Mr. Popo, and thank you," she waved to them both as Piccolo picked her up and began the flight towards her home. 

As they flew, May talked about all the ideas she had gotten for her books, from just meeting the two living at the lookout. "But first, I have to finish the one I'm working on now." 

"What's this one about?" 

May smiled slyly and said, "It's a surprise. You'll have to wait." 

Piccolo was surprised at this revelation, but didn't show it. He soon arrived at the house nestled in the woods and landed on the front lawn. He set May down on the ground and watched as she walked to the front door and unlocked it. She turned back for a moment and said, "Thank you for the ride." 

"You're welcome," he said, and took off for his cave. 

_Somewhere in space:_

"Computer, how much longer until we reach our destination?" A woman's voice asked. 

"Approximately six days, two hours, seven minutes, four seconds . . ." the monotonous voice of the computer responded. 

"Enough!" The woman said angrily, "This trip has been far too long in coming." 

"Yes mistress," a strange looking purple alien said as he stood beside the woman. 

"I will have my revenge," she said, and began laughing maniacally. 

"Yes mistress," the creature said again. 

* * *

A/N: Sorry this is so short and it took so long to get out, but I have a bit of writers block for just this story. It's crazy, but I hope to get a longer chapter out soon, so bear with me. 


	8. The Photo

**The Photo**

The next day, May was up quite early. She had decided that today was the day. Piccolo was coming over at noon to tell her all he knew about Saiyans and she was planning to get him to stay for dinner. Afterwards, she was going to give him her gift and attempt to tell him what she hoped he would return. 

May showered and dressed in a lovely new outfit she had purchased yesterday. It was a lovely violet skirt that reached to about five inches above her knees and held tight to her legs. She also wore a white baby t-shirt that hugged the curves of her chest and back like a second skin, and had a design across the chest which was a vine bearing purple roses entwined within around a lighter purple heart. She had never worn anything quite like this, but Bulma had says that she looked 'drop-dead gorgeous' when she had tried in on in the store. 

It was now about eleven and she still had an hour until his arrival. She decided to start setting everything up and by the time she was finished, it was only eleven-thirty. 

May sighed in exasperation. Time just would not speed up no matter how much she wanted it too. She decided to just take a seat on the couch and watch a little television until the clock chimed the hour. 

Meanwhile, Piccolo was at his waterfall, but he wasn't meditating. Instead, the burly Namekian was actually pacing. Unusual as it may seem, Piccolo was having a hard time figuring out how he was supposed to tell May what he felt for her. He had never been good with emotions, but believe it or not, the advice from everyone had actually helped him make up his mind. 

Piccolo had decided that, no matter what happened, he was not going to allow his feelings to scare him. It was silly to admit, but he would rather face Freeza again than attempt to confront May. Piccolo sighed in annoyance. How could the great Demon King be afraid of a mere woman? It was easy if you couldn't in any way bring harm or see harm done to said woman. 

It was pointless to argue with himself, and he noticed that it was almost noon. He decided to think about it on the way to his visit with May. He took to the air, flying slowly, and attempting to calm his hectic thoughts.   


**********

  


_In a ship somewhere in space heading towards the planet:_

"This is taking far too long," the woman scowled angrily at the front screen as she sat on the bridge of her spaceship. She turned slightly to look at the strange purple alien nearby, "Tell them to increase speed." 

"B-b-but that could overload the engines," he stammered fearfully. 

She looked at him angrily, her eyes almost flashing red, "Are you questioning my orders?" she hollered causing the little man to cower in fear. 

"N-no m-m-mistress," and with that, he left the room to deliver the orders. 

The woman smirked in satisfaction. After a few minutes, the gauges had new reading on them, and the ship was moving faster. 

"Computer," she said, "How long until we reach the destination?" 

"Three days, seven minutes, four seconds . . ." The monotone voice said. 

"Perfect," she whispered in satisfaction. She then reached over picked up a photograph that sat nearby. "Soon my darling, I will avenge your death," she said as she ran her fingers over the figures face in the photo, tears welling up in her eyes. 

She then thought back to all the preparations that she had ordered previously. She had sent a scout ahead to spy on the protectors of the pathetic planet they were heading towards. The data that he had sent back said that the killer was among that group. He hadn't found out who it was yet, but he did send that Prince Vegeta and one other Saiyan lived their. 

At first she thought that they might help her avenge her loves death, but the scout had sent that the Saiyan Kakarrot acted more human than Saiyan, while the prince had started a family and was living peacefully at the moment. The remaining fighters were of no concern because they were too weak to even consider. 

There was only one other person that could have possibly killed such a powerful man. He was an alien, a Namek, according to the records, and he appeared to be almost as powerful as the Saiyan's. He was the only possible link to her darling's death.   


**********

  


_Back on the planet on the lookout:_

Dende looked towards the heavens as the feeling of dread grew. "Something bad is coming," he whispered to himself. 

_Back to the couple:_

Piccolo landed in the front yard of May's house at exactly twelve o'clock noon. He gently tapped on the front door, still making it sound like pounding, and the door opened to a beautiful sight. Had he been the sort to do so, his jaw would have hit the floor. But, because this was Piccolo, his lips did part in shock for a moment. 

"Hey Piccolo," May greeted him with overjoyed enthusiasm. She had not been able to sit still for the past half hour, and now that he was actually here, she was sure he could hear her heart thumping its way out of her chest. "Come on in," she greeted and moved away from the door, motioning for him to enter. 

He greeted her with a quiet, "Hello," and stepped into the dwelling. As usual, he was without his shoulder pads, cape, and turban. She took a seat on the couch in the living room, and he sat at the opposite end. 

Piccolo noticed that there were several papers and a few books strewn across the coffee table. "Piccolo," she began hesitantly, wanting to get this over with before she lost her nerve, "I want you to read something first and tell me what you think, okay?" 

Piccolo could hear the nervousness in her voice, and this puzzled him as to why she should be nervous when he was the one that couldn't stop staring into her beautiful eyes. "All right," he agreed. 

She picked up a manuscript from the table and said, "This is my next book. It's . . . uh . . . actually a sequel to the book that you inspired me to write." 

Piccolo was surprised at this, but he took the pages and scanned the cover, reading the title, 'Love in Writing'. He looked up at May and said, "I will read it under the tree outside." He stood up and walked to the door. 

May followed nervously, "All right, but when you're done, tell me what you think?" 

"Okay," he said, and went to sit under the tree in her front yard. 

_Three hours later:_

May had taken Piccolo a glass of water before he began reading too far into the book, and she had subsequently been peeking through the curtains over her windows, watching his expressions, which never altered. She was growing increasingly nervous and worried the longer he took. 

Piccolo's mind was in turmoil as his emotions raged. If what happened in this book had any bearing on the current situation, then it told him that May felt for him what he felt for her. It was coming together and he knew now what he would do. He wasn't a man of words, but actions. 

Piccolo closed the book after reading the last page, and stood up, making his way to the front door of the house. In her excitement, May opened the door just as his fist was about to connect with the door. He lowered his arm and handed her the book, which she set on a small table near the door. 

May looked up at him in quiet anticipation, her eyes betraying her love. He stood there quietly for a moment before he leaned down, his arm snaking its way behind her, and pulling her to him for a kiss. 

Piccolo was new at this, but he followed his instincts and felt May respond. He could sense her happiness and joy radiating from her very being. He felt her heart beating against her chest as it was pressed up to his own. 

As he pulled back, May remained pressed against him, her head now resting on his shoulder, and he heard her sigh in contentment. Taking her up in his arms, he stepped into the house and closed the door. 

* * *

A/N: I'm sure you can guess who the mysterious woman is getting revenge for. I think it's obvious, but that's probably because I already know who it is. Also, for the time being, they're not going any farther than kissing, just to let you all know. 


	9. The Capture

**The Capture**

Piccolo flew onwards towards the Capsule Corporation where several of the other fighters had gathered. They could now feel an evil force heading towards the planet and Capsule Corps satellites had picked up an unidentified ship. Dende's feelings had been correct and the team had been anticipating something for the past week. 

He landed next to Krillen who greeted him with a wave and followed him into the building and through to the living room where the others were waiting. "Now that we're all here," Bulma said, "The ship is only two hours away from the planet's atmosphere and according to my calculations, it should land somewhere in this vicinity," she pointed to a map that she had set up. 

"How strong to you guys think this new enemy is?" Krillen asked. 

"Well, we can't really tell yet because I think whoever it is, is hiding their full strength," Goku said. 

Bulma spoke up again, "The ship isn't like one of those one-manned space pods, and it is big enough to have an entire crew." 

"Well, let's head out there and meet them. Maybe they'll just leave once they find out we're here," Goku mentioned. 

Vegeta snorted and made his way out of the building, but as he was about to take to the air, Bulma screeched, "Vegeta!" 

Vegeta winced and asked, "What is it woman?" 

Bulma stomped up to him and put her arms around his neck, "You're taking me with you." 

"What? You'll only be in the way and probably get yourself killed." 

"I'll be all right, and I want to see these new aliens," she said. 

"Fine," he said as he picked her up, "Maybe you'll get yourself killed and get off of my back." 

She glared at him, but he ignored her and flew on, followed closely by the other fighters which consisted of Krillen, Goku, Gohan, Piccolo, Goten, and Trunks. 

**********

Meanwhile, in the forest near May's home, a shadowy figure crept through the trees and spied upon the young woman as she tended to her garden. May had been worried when Piccolo had told her that he was leaving to fight a new enemy on its way to the planet, and the only way to keep her from going crazy with worry, was to get her mind on other things. 

May sat back on her knees and wiped her sweaty brow with the back of her hand. She sighed in frustration that this wasn't helping much. Her mind kept drifting back to Piccolo and the last few days that she had spent in bliss with him. She knew that he was a little new at the emotions between them, so they had decided to go slowly. 

Unfortunately, May didn't here the footsteps across the ground as they approached. She did notice a shadow loom over her, but before she could do anything, something hit her on the back of the head and caused her to fall to her side. She groaned in pain for a moment and her vision blurred as blackness consumed her. The last thing she saw was a purple blurry face smirking down at her before there was nothing. 

**********

The fighters landed at the approximate area where the ship was supposed to land according to Bulma. She hid herself behind some rocks on a nearby cliff's edge, and hoped not to be seen. 

Piccolo had a very bad feeling about what was coming and it had just gotten worse when they arrived. The others were talking amongst themselves when the ship came into view. It looked similar to the ship that Freeza had arrived in on Namek. 

As soon as it landed, the door opened up to reveal a tall woman with flaming red hair cut short at the nape of her neck. She wore armor similar to that of what Freeza's forces had worn, but this had a golden color to it. On both sides of her were a strange looking purple alien, and three others were walking behind her. 

The woman stood about ten feet away from the group of fighters, and she eyed them all suspiciously. She also searched the area for her wayward scout. He had contacted her yesterday to report on the status of the fighters. She then ordered him to kidnap someone that could be used against them and then to report to her position upon landing, keeping the hostage in his own pod that had landed not to far from the landing site. 

Vegeta had a feeling that he knew this woman from somewhere. She seemed like a familiar face from his past, though someone he didn't know that well. 

One of the purple aliens approached the woman and whispered so that only the Namek's ears could pick it up, "The scout has accomplished his objective and is on his way." 

She nodded once and looked again at the fighters that stood before her. The Saiyan prince spoke, "Who are you and what are you doing here?" 

"Very well prince," she said, shocking some of the Z gang, "I want to know who among you is responsible for the death of the Saiyan known as Radditz." 

"Radditz?" Goku questioned, "Why do you want to know about him?" 

It was then that Vegeta remembered, "You were that crazy woman with the obsession over that sorry excuse for a Saiyan," he smirked at her furious face. 

"He was a great man," she fumed, "And whoever killed him is going to pay." 

"Yeah right," Vegeta scoffed, "The last time I saw you, you could barely even fight." 

The woman looked at him with confidence, "Time passes and people change little prince." 

They noticed another alien approaching their position and as it landed between them, he turned to the woman and bowed before stepping to the side to join the others. 

The woman smiled slyly and said, "Forgive me for not introducing myself properly. My name is Adora." 

"What do you want here?" Goku asked. 

"I want the one responsible for Radditz's death, and if you don't hand him over to me now, I'm afraid something untoward could happen to our guest," she said in mock compassion. 

The fighters looked confused for a moment and Goku asked, "What do you mean?" 

"I mean that I have someone whose interest you might want to look after. She appears to be a normal human being, and the people of this planet are mostly pathetic weaklings. Now, tell me who killed him or something untoward just might happen to her." 

"How do we know that you're telling the truth?" Gohan asked. 

"You see, little boy, I've had a scout watching you for quite sometime. What was the name he gave me?" She wondered, placing a hand beneath her chin. Her eyes then lit up as she remembered, "Ah yes, it was May." 

At that, Piccolo's eyes widened a bit and Gohan watched him out of the corner of his eye. Piccolo's thoughts were running rampant at the moment as he thought about how he had just seen her that morning. 

_*Flashback*_

Piccolo had just finished telling May that he was going to help in the fight against a new enemy. As he looked into her worried and saddened eyes, his heart almost stopped. He didn't want to do anything to make her sad, but he had to go soon. 

"Just promise me you'll be careful, ok?" She asked as she leaned her head against his chest. Listening to his heartbeat had become one of her favorite things to do. 

"I'll try," he said, but that was the best that he could do. 

"I don't want someone to have to tell me that you're dead, even if those Dragonballs can bring people back to life." 

Piccolo refrained from telling her that the balls could only be used once to bring people back from the dead because she would just worry more than she already was. He sighed and said, "I'll be fine. I'll be back before dark." 

"All right," she said, and stretched onto her toes for one last kiss before he left. 

She stood outside and waved to his retreating form until he was nothing more than a speck in the sky. 

_*End Flashback*_

A/N: Sorry for the shorter chapters, but I can't seem to make them longer. The next one might be a little longer because of the fight scene though. 


	10. The Escape

**The Escape**

May woke up, her head pounding in her skull, as she tried to remember what had happened to her. The last thing she remembered was working in her garden, worrying about Piccolo. Then, there was someone behind her casting a shadow, and finally nothing. 

May opened her eyes slowly. It took a moment for her vision to focus, but once she could see well enough, she noticed that she was in some sort of little room. It had a window on one side, but she was too low to look out at anything but the sky. Her arms were tied behind her back at her wrists and her ankles were joined as well. She lay on her side on the floor of a round room; at one end was a chair and what looked like several consoles with buttons. At the opposite end was a bed and two tall boxes that looked to serve the same purpose as dressers, but they didn't have any handles. 

May then noticed that whoever had tied her up had made one major mistake; instead of being blindfolded, she had been gagged. It was a dumb mistake that would allow her to escape if she could find something to cut the bindings around her wrists. She had very little maneuverability, but she could bend her knees and allow herself to slide across the smooth tiled floor. As she slid over to one of the boxes, she examined it for a way to open it. 

In a corner of the box was a small button that she pushed with her head. As soon as she had pushed it, the bottom drawer opened to reveal nothing. It was empty. She sighed in frustration and pushed it closed before opening the one above it. Using the bed as leverage, she lifted up to her knees and looked inside. As luck would have it, there were weapons in this drawer, including what looked like one of those ray guns from the old movies, and a knife still in the sheath. 

After rising to her feet, though unsteadily, May maneuvered her back against the box so that her hands could reach into the drawer and draw out the knife. Unsheathing the knife, she lay back upon the bed and began to work at the bindings on her wrists.   


**********

  


Piccolo growled in anger, his power shooting up, which caused the other fighters to look at him in slight surprise. "What have you done with her?" he hollered, anger clearly registering to the woman before him. 

Adora smirked at the reaction she had received; this was all going according to her plan. "She is safe, for now." 

Gohan was worried, not only for May, but for what Piccolo might do should he let his anger get the best of him. As he watched the Namek, his power kept rising. 

"If you must know, I killed Radditz," Piccolo then smirked at the angered reaction of the woman, "He was a weak, sorry excuse for a warrior." 

Adora was fuming by now and shouted, "He was a great man!" 

"He was going to destroy the planet. We had to stop him," Goku said. 

"You helped him, so you will die as well," Adora said, and motioned for several of her little minions to attack. 

Three of the purple aliens launched themselves at the fighters, while the three others stayed behind with what looked like weapons of some sort. Goku, Piccolo, and Vegeta were targeted by the aliens, and soon launched themselves into a battle. The other four, Krillin, Goten, Trunks, and Gohan, stayed behind to keep an eye on the other enemies. 

One of the aliens fired an energy beam from the weapon straight at Gohan. He barely dodged it, and soon the others were dodging blasts from the other weapons. As they tried to get close enough to destroy them, the others continued their battle in the air. 

The little purple aliens were strong, but nothing that two full-blooded Saiyans and a pissed off Namek couldn't handle. Goku and Vegeta had powered up to Super Saiyan, and managed to work somewhat together. The two aliens collided, their energy hitting each other, and destroyed themselves. Piccolo, who had already powered up, simply hit the being into the air, and fired a ki beam at it, disintegrating it instantly. 

Gohan and the others had managed to get past the energy beams, though not without a few scratches, and destroy the other aliens. This left only the woman, Adora, standing before her ship, with an odd satisfied smirk gracing her lips.   


**********

  


May managed to cut the bonds binding her wrists, but not without a few cuts to her arms. Once free, she tore the sleeves off of her shirt and used the shreds as bandages to her wrists. 

"All right," she said to herself, "Now to find a way out of here and find out where I am." 

She searched the front of the ship, but the controls were in some odd language that she couldn't read. 'One of them has to open a door outside,' she thought. 

Across the panel, there were several important looking buttons on one side. One was red, one was blue, and one was green. Now, which one should she push? She didn't want the ship to suddenly take off with her into space, or to suddenly blow up, but she had to decide. 

"Eeny, meeny, miny mo," she said to herself, landing on the green button. "Here goes nothing," closing her eyes, she pushed the button. Nothing happened. 

A few seconds later there was a rumbling sound that shook the entire ship. One side of the flooring began lowering and she soon found a ramp leading outside. She happily bounded out of the ship and onto the sandy ground. Looking around, her spirits fell again as all she could see was a vast land of nothing but sand. It was a rocky desert with no sign of life for quite a ways away. 

She climbed onto a high rock to get a better view and saw what looked to be flashes of light in the distance. Even if it was just the sunlight reflecting off of something, that something would either be man-made, or be water that she could follow to civilization. 

Deciding it would be better to take her chances away from whoever it was that had captured her, she set out on her journey towards the flashes of light.   


**********

  


Adora's smirk was aggravating on Piccolo's nerves. He was worried for May's safety and also he was very mad that he hadn't been able to anticipate such a move on the enemies behalf. 

"You think you've won," Adora sneered, "the fight has just begun," and her armor began to glow an even brighter golden color as it appeared she was powering up. "I have waited so long for this day, and you will not take my revenge from me." 

She launched herself at Piccolo who barely had time to dodge the fist she swung at his middle. She caught his side and it somehow ripped through his gi and cut through the skin on his right side. She then lashed out her foot towards his head, but he again dodged it, although not fast enough as it sliced through his right shoulder. 

Adora had somehow made herself into a large sharp weapon. The armor she had on, now that he had a closer look, was connected to her in such a way that it made her stronger, faster, and more dangerous than she would have been without it. 

Vegeta powered up and charged her, his fists poised to attack, and attempted to knock her out of the sky. Unfortunately, as soon as his fist connected, a surge of electricity shot out and he hollered out in anger and pain as the voltage sent him hurtling to the ground. 

He rose from the crater he had made, and sneered up at the woman who looked down on him with a satisfied smirk. "You can't touch me. I will deal with the rest of you once I have taken care of the Namek." 

A/N: I like a woman who can take care of herself and doesn't need to be rescued. Although, I also enjoy when the woman is in danger and the guy comes to the rescue. Either way, just so you all know, I have to have happy endings and this story will definitely have a happy ending no matter what happens. 


	11. The Wounded

**The Wounded**

The fight had been going on for the past five minutes, and in that short amount of time, all of the participating fighters, Gohan, Goten, Trunks, Vegeta, Goku, and Piccolo, were in pretty bad shape. The worst was Piccolo, whose arm had already been severed once and re-grown. Everyone was also covered in deep scratches and bruises. 

Adora was mainly focusing her attacks on the Namek, for he was the reason for her love's demise, but she also didn't ignore the fact that the humanized Saiyan was also partly responsible. She readied another attack and continued her assault on the weary fighters. Her technology and deadly determination was no match for their brute force.   


**********

  


It had only been five minutes, and already the heat was getting to her. May wiped her forehead of the sweat building up there and running into her eyes as she trudged onwards. The closer she got the more detail she could see and at the moment, she couldn't see much, but she could hear a lot. 

Every once in a while, she could hear a booming sound coming from the direction she was now heading. It sounded similar to the noises she had heard as she had watched the sparring match between Piccolo and Goku. The more she thought about it, the more the possibility existed that she was heading towards a battle of some sort. Unfortunately, she didn't really have much choice in the matter about which direction to head, as she had no idea where she was.   


**********

  


"Give up and I'll kill you quickly," Adora taunted the fighters, "Don't and I'll just have to torture you further." 

"We won't let you kill anyone," Goku spoke up, launching another attack while in Super Saiyan. 

Adora just smirked and replied, "Like you have a choice." She dodged the attack and used the opportunity to adjust something on her suit. An even brighter yellow light surrounded her and caused her to smile just a little bigger. "You have no chance," she said, launching herself straight at Piccolo. 

Vegeta attempted to knock her out of the air, but as soon as he came close, a searing pain shot through him, causing him to pull back and fly away from her. "What is the use if we can't even get near her?" He scoffed, alerting everyone to what had happened. 

Piccolo moved just in time to avoid any impact, but the spot where he had stood, where Adora had landed, was now a large crater, telling all just how far away the shield surrounding her was.   


**********

  


May climbed over another boulder and looked towards the edge of a ledge. She saw the blue haired woman she had met kneeling down, as if trying to hide, but still see what was going on. May crawled closer and whispered, "Hey, Bulma." 

Bulma nearly jumped out of her skin at that, but once she got a look at who it was, she smiled widely, her eyes watering slightly, as she lunged at the startled May causing her to fall back to the ground. "You're here, you're alive," Bulma exclaimed happily. 

"Of course I'm alive, what did you think?" 

Bulma got up and motioned May to look over the cliffs edge. She pointed to a woman and said, "That woman said that you had been kidnapped and that if they didn't give up, you would die." 

"Oh, is that why I was taken. I escaped from a ship not to far from here," she said simply as if it was the most natural thing in the world. 

"Well, we'd better find some way to tell them that you're ok," Bulma mentioned. 

As the two women watched, the fighting continued and the fighters didn't seem to be gaining any ground. Without being able to get close to Adora, they were forced to rely primarily on energy attacks. Unfortunately, the shield seemed to absorb any attack they threw and it grew in power. 

Adora was floating high in the sky, and as she looked down towards the ground, she noticed that the fight was being watched. 'Now who could that be,' she asked herself. 'I can use one of them to make them surrender.' 

She flew through attacks being thrown at her, batting them away like annoying flies, and, faster than the human eye could see, she swooped down, lowered her shield momentarily, and snatched May from the ground. Her shield back in place, she held the wriggling woman in her grasp, her arm around May's throat. It didn't quite cut off her supply of oxygen, but she couldn't catch her breath or speak very well. 

May struggled to get away, but she soon found that it was no use, the grip was too strong, so she just held onto the arm, hoping someone would help her. As she looked around, she saw Piccolo, and her eyes looked at him imploringly. She noticed that he and the others were in pretty bad shape, but she really didn't want to die. 

Piccolo watched as Adora swooped down and came back with a woman who he soon recognized as May. He was wondering how she had gotten here, but he soon was working on planning how he was going to rescue her. 

"Now what have we here," Adora said, looking down at the human she now held, "Do any of you know her?" 

No one answered, not wanting her to have any reason to use May against them. 

"No, well in that case, you won't mind if I just kill her." She reached her other hand around May's head and made as if to snap her neck. 

"No!" Piccolo hollered. He then flew directly in front of Adora. 

"Really, you seem to actually care about this little human," she smirked in amusement, "Well, unless you want her dead, you will surrender now." 

Piccolo's mind was in turmoil. He couldn't surrender to this woman, but he couldn't allow May to come to any harm. He had promised himself that he would never hurt May in any way or allow her to be hurt by anyone else. How was he supposed to keep such a promise? 

"You better let her go, or else," Goku said coming to fly next to Piccolo. 

"Or else what?" Adora questioned, her tone becoming just down right mean. 

"Or else you are going to die a horribly painful death," Piccolo growled. 

Adora laughed at that, causing her grip to loosen and allowing May the chance she had been waiting for. With one last look at Piccolo, May opened her mouth and, with all the strength she could muster, she bit down on Adora's hand. 

Adora cried out in pain at the unexpected move on behalf of her hostage, and dropped the woman. May fell, but as soon as she came into contact with the shield, she cried out in pain. It lasted only a second, but the pain seemed to last for much longer. It felt like a thousand knifes were piercing her skin, and caused her to black out. 

Piccolo flew down as fast as he could and caught her. At first he feared that she was dead, but he could see her breath barely causing the rise in her chest. To his ears, her heartbeat was weak, but steady. 

He landed on the ground and carefully lay his precious cargo down. With one last look, he launched himself at the woman who was still in slight shock at what a mere human could do to her. With revenge ever present in her mind, she returned to the battle in time to be presented with one truly angry Namek. 


	12. The Healed

A/N: Sorry for the delay, but I had a tough choice deciding whether or not to kill May. I won't tell you what I decided, so you'll have to read to find out. 

**The Healed**

Piccolo charged directly at Adora, not caring whether or not that shield was there. He only wanted revenge for May's current state. He didn't know whether she would live or die, but he didn't care at the moment. The only thing he knew is that May had been hurt and this woman would pay. 

Piccolo focused all of his energy into his outstretched fist, concentrating it all into a fine point that would act like a laser beam and hopefully cut through the shield. As soon as he came into contact with the shield, a searing pain laced its way through his body, but this did not deter him. His fist was making its way slowly through the shield, inch by inch. 

Adora could only look on in shock at the Namek as he began to breech her shields. How this was possible, she didn't know, as she had spent years searching for the perfect weapon for her revenge. 

Piccolo was in an immense amount of pain, but he couldn't stop now and he focused that pain into power that soon got him through the shield. As he passed through the shield, the pain grew for a moment, and his fist hit the woman in the chest, creating a large hole through the weapon. Adora could only look on in shock and pain as her precious device was disabled. 

She wasn't killed, but she fell hard to the ground, creating a small crater around her form. Piccolo dropped as well, not to far away, and collapsed to the ground, the pain still lingering. The fighters just looked on in shock, until they heard Gohan cry out, "Piccolo!" They rushed to his side and Vegeta checked to see if the woman was dead yet. 

Bulma, meanwhile, made her way down the cliff and over to May that had yet to awake. She checked her over while the others checked on Piccolo. 

Piccolo groaned, but sat up, despite the pain he still felt, and glanced over to where the woman had fallen. He saw Vegeta leaning over her and asked, in a hoarse voice, "She dead?" 

Vegeta kicked her, none to gently, and heard a low moan, "Not yet." 

Piccolo growled low, but he didn't think he had the energy left to fight. Vegeta, on the other hand, was perfectly willing to end the pitiful woman's existence, and he began charging a blast in the palm of his hand. Just then, Adora woke up and saw Vegeta, not noticing the ball of light forming in his hand, she said, "I will find a way to kill you all." 

Vegeta smirked and said, "Not in this lifetime," and with that, he let the ki ball loose and she disintegrated within seconds, a horror filled scream emanating from her mouth. 

Piccolo smirked in satisfaction and slumped back to the ground. He then remembered May and suppressed the groan that threatened to escape his mouth as he rose. Not without a little help from Gohan, he got all the way to his feet and looked around. He noticed Bulma leaning over May, and limped over to where they were, using Gohan as a sort of crutch, not that he minded. 

"How is she?" he asked the blue-haired woman. 

Bulma looked a little saddened and said, "She needs help now. Her pulse is weakening and her breath is ragged." 

Piccolo was in no condition to do much, though he wanted so much to fly her straight to Dende. He then noticed Goku and said, "Son! Get over here and take us to the lookout." 

"Huh," Goku responded and then he understood, "Oh yeah, everyone hang on," he said, placing a hand on May's shoulder. Piccolo held his shoulder while Gohan was still in contact with him, and Bulma was still touching May. Vegeta, not wanting to be left behind, took Bulma's shoulder, and Goten and Trunks put their hands on Goku's other shoulder. 

In a blink, the group was on the lookout, and Piccolo hollered out, "Dende!" 

The young guardian hurried to the group, and they parted for him to reveal the woman on the floor. He hurried over and placed his hands above her form. A glow began emitting from them and everyone watched in anticipation. 

May felt the pain ebb away and she slowly opened her eyes. It was blurry at first, but as the figures before he became clear, the first thing she saw was Piccolo leaning over her with a worried look on his face. She smiled a little and then noticed the pained expression he wore. She asked, "Are you all right Piccolo?" as she rose and stood before him. 

"I'm fine," he said, though he winced in pain and she noticed. 

"Dende," she looked at him imploringly and he obliged by healing the stubborn Namek. 

Piccolo just humphed and stood up straight, no longer needing to rely on Gohan as a crutch. 

"We gotta be heading home," Goku said, motioning for Goten and Gohan. They said their goodbyes and left the lookout soon followed by the Bulma, Vegeta and Trunks. 

Piccolo picked May up and headed to her home after she gave her thanks to Dende.   


* * *

  


A/N: Come now, did you really think I could kill such a great character. I always have to have happy endings. One more chapter and this fic is finished so stay tuned. 


	13. The Beginning

**The Beginning**

The flight home was quiet with May nestled securely in Piccolo's arms. She was content, but she didn't see the look that crossed Piccolo's face. He seemed to be having trouble sorting his thoughts and he didn't know what he should do. 

On the one hand, Piccolo knew that he loved this woman and would do anything for her. But, on the other hand, he didn't want her to get hurt because of whom and what he is. Being around him meant being worried about safety and life. He didn't know if he could give her up, but he didn't know if he should stay. 

They landed shortly and May sighed as she was set on her feet. She began walking to the door when she noticed that Piccolo wasn't following. She looked back smiling, until she noticed that he had a worried look on his face. 

May walked back to stand before him and said, in a worried tone, "What's wrong Piccolo?" 

"You could have been killed today," he said grimly, not quite looking her in the eye. He couldn't look into her eyes for he would have lost his courage to say what he wanted to say. 

"But you and your friends saved me," she chirped happily, "and then Dende healed me and I feel better than ever. So now, we can go on with life." 

"What if someone else comes wanting revenge on me for something that I've done?" 

"I'll be all right," she said, suddenly worried that he might do or say something she didn't want to hear, "I have you and the others to protect me, right?" 

"We won't always be able to save you. It might be best if I just leave," Piccolo said, still unable to look May in the eye. 

If he would have, he would have seen the tears forming in her eyes. In a choked voice she said, "No Piccolo, I don't want you to leave. You can't leave me alone again." 

Piccolo turned around and began walking away. Unfortunately, May grabbed his cape and refused to let go. He stopped, but didn't look back. 

"Before you came I was all alone. You gave me friendship and I . . ." she trailed off. 

Piccolo sighed and turned to finally face her. He could see the tears that now streamed down her cheeks. His own eyes softened considerably and his courage wavered. 

"You what?" he asked, wanting her to finish her thought. 

"I love you," she said softly, then proceeded to lower her head and turn away. She didn't want to be rejected or let him see the pain behind her eyes. She began walking slowly towards the house, not once looking back. 

Piccolo stood there for a moment, his mind stunned into silence. Before he knew it he was walking after her and had grabbed her shoulder to turn her back around. She looked up in stunned silence and he could now see the hurt that lurked in her eyes. He had promised to never hurt her and he was, once again, breaking that promise. 

He lowered his head to her ear and whispered, "I love you too," and with that, he leaned in to kiss her. May's arms snaked their way to clasp around his neck while Piccolo wrapped his own arms around her waist. He stood up, taking her with him, and into his arms, never once breaking the kiss. 

They pulled away a moment later, lungs starving for air, and looked into each others eyes. Piccolo still believed that she would get hurt, but he didn't think he could let her go. "You can still get hurt, or killed," he remarked, wanting her to know that she had a choice. 

"I know," she replied, "but I would rather die than not have you in my arms ever again." 

Piccolo actually smiled an honest to goodness smile and he could feel the love filling his heart that he had for this woman. He didn't ever want to leave her side again. 

**********

Several weeks later, the entire gang had gotten together for another party that Bulma had planned. After the last one, she made sure that no one had too much to drink. Once everyone had arrived, the food was served, and they all chatted about different things. 

Piccolo was quieter than usual, but no one seemed to notice except for May and Gohan, the two people that new him best. Unlike May though, Gohan knew what was going on. Piccolo had a plan, but he wasn't sure if he could do it in front of all of these people, even if they were supposed to be his friends. Lately, Piccolo had been watching television; more accurately would be romantic shows and movies, and he was waiting for the perfect time to act. 

Piccolo had been practically living with May for the past month and they had gotten closer. Nothing major had happened, but some nights, while sitting in front of the fireplace or the television, May would fall asleep in Piccolo's arms and he would keep a watchful eye on her. He now knew that he would do anything for her, whether it cost him his life or caused him a lot of pain, he would do it for her. 

Everyone was now off in little groups talking about various things. May was having a conversation with Bulma and Chi-chi, with Goku still munching in the background. They were all laughing and having a good time, and Piccolo decided that it was now or never. 

Mustering up more courage than he had fighting Freeza, he walked slowly over to May and the girls and stopped. May looked up at him and said, "Hey Piccolo, what is it?" 

Piccolo swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and noticed Gohan smiling at him in encouragement. "I have something to ask you," he said simply. 

May just smiled up at him, nodded her head, and waited for him to ask his question. She was completely unprepared for what he did next. He bent to one knee and asked, as quickly as he could with her still understanding, and asked, "Will you marry me?" He pulled a black box out of gi and opened it to reveal a beautiful gold ring that wrapped around to form two loops interlocking with a jade stone set in the middle of the loops. 

May gasped in surprise, as well as everyone else at the party, as they watched Piccolo kneel before a woman and ask such a question. They were very surprised. May looked into his eyes, tears forming in her own, and for a moment he thought that he had done something wrong and hurt her again. 

Caught completely by surprise, Piccolo fell back onto the grass when May lunged at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face into his shirt. A muffled sob came out and she said, "I love you so much." 

He wasn't sure exactly what she had said, but he asked, "Is that a yes?" 

She looked down at him from her position on his chest, tears still evident in her eyes, but they were happy tears. "Yes," she said and leaned in for a kiss. It would have turned more passionate had the group not taken that moment to burst into applause and congratulations. 

The two stood up and accepted the gratitude, though Piccolo looked a little uneasy, May was busy showing off her lovely ring. When she asked if he had actually gone into the city to buy it, he mentioned that Gohan had helped and, though he hated going into the city for any reason whatsoever, he had gone with Gohan to buy that ring. She hugged him again and gave him a kiss for being so thoughtful. 

Chi-chi, to everyone's surprise, seemed to be acting more civil towards Piccolo and asked him and May, "When's the wedding?" 

Piccolo was stumped. He had been so nervous about asking that nothing else had entered his mind and he had no idea. May on the other hand said, "Well, if Piccolo agrees, I'd love to have it on Valentine's Day." 

"Fine with me," he said, and then stopped really paying attention when they began discussing all the preparations. 

**********

Valentine's Day had arrived and the lookout was in frenzy. May and Piccolo had decided on a small ceremony with just their closest friends. Though May had a few friends outside of the Z fighter group, none of them were that close so she had asked Bulma to be her maid of honor. Piccolo had asked Gohan to be his best man. Chi-chi had agreed to cook for the occasion and had made a beautiful banquet for the reception. Dende had been thrilled at the prospect of marrying the couple and had quickly agreed to perform the ceremony. 

Piccolo was, at the moment, in a room of the lookout getting ready with Gohan. They had convinced Piccolo, though mainly through May's influence, to wear a black tuxedo for the ceremony with a red rose in the lapel. Gohan was just fixing his tie when a knock came to the door. 

Mr. Popo announced that it was time and left to prepare. Piccolo was fidgeting in nervousness. Gohan had never seen him so agitated, but it was quite understandable. 

"Relax," he said, trying to calm the Namekian's already waning nerves. Piccolo just glared at him, but tried to calm himself. 

Piccolo stood at the end of the aisle, next to Dende, and surrounded by his friends as he watched Gohan lead Bulma towards him. Once they had arrived, the music changed to the bridal march, and Piccolo held his breath as an angel walked towards him. 

May was dressed in a lovely white gown, simply cut, but with much detail. Along the bottom there were beads sown into the layered fabric that were numerous, but became fewer the higher up the dress. The top was strapless and showed the milky white skin of her shoulders. She wore her lovely red hair up in numerous curls, and woven through with white and red flowers and beads. Her veil hung down her back and covered her face. She carried a bouquet of thornless red roses to match her hair. 

All of the nervousness that Piccolo felt disappeared when his lovely angel appeared. She smiled at him and didn't remove her eyes as she made her way to him. He remembered to breathe so as not to pass out and half listened as Dende began. 

The kiss at the end lasted a little longer than was appropriate, but no one really cared, and they made their way to the reception. Bulma and Gohan each said a little speech and gave a toast to the happy couple and then everyone began eating, or drinking in the case of the Nameks. 

Afterwards, once everyone had finished and the two were about to leave on their honeymoon, Chi-chi asked with a sly smile, "So, where's the honeymoon going to be?" 

"I'm not sure," May explained, "Piccolo said he was planning that." 

"Really?" Bulma remarked in amazement and looked at Piccolo. 

"It's a surprise," he said, and gathered up his bride in his arms. After a few more farewells, they took off to their destination and a new life together. A new beginning . . . 

The End! 

********** 

A/N: Sorry this took so long, but I couldn't decide how to end it and then I wasn't going to put the whole getting married thing in, but if I didn't it would have been a really short chapter. 

Actually, I'm just lazy, but anyway, how was it? I wasn't even expecting the wedding, but I thought it made a good ending. I have no idea where they went on their honeymoon, Piccolo wouldn't tell me. 

Please review and tell me what you thought! 


End file.
